OpenOffice is the leading open-source office software suite for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, databases and more. It is available in many languages and works on all common computers. It stores all your data in an international open standard format and can also read and write files from other common office software packages. It can be downloaded and used completely free of charge. Download Open Office.

If you receive a document in ODT format and wish to convert it to an MS Word document format then the best option is to use Google docs.

To use this service you must have a Google account. If you already have a gmail e-mail address then this is a google account and you use the same username/password to login to Google docs. If you do not have a google account then click here to sign up. Create new google account. It is a completely free service supplied by Google.

Once you have your google account, login here: Google docs or go to google’s main page in your browser. Go to More then Documents

After logging in, you can upload the ODT file to google using the Upload tab and select Files then go to the folder on your PC that your ODT file is located and select it. Click Open, you will then be asked to modify the upload settings. Just tick all of the boxes then click Start Upload.

Once you have the document in Google, you can modify the text to suit your needs. To save the document in the format of your choice (ODT, PDF, RTF, TEXT, MS WORD or HTML) goto File - Download As then select the format. EG: Word.

By the way, this is a great way to convert a document into a PDF file.

If you are frequently converting lots of documents, try using a converter program on your PC as the upload/download process can be tedious.